Identification plate and method of making same



Sept. 1, 1931. B. J. POVALSKI 1,821,577

IDENTIFTICATION PLATE AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed April 25. 1929 was n WEN ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 1, 1931 BERNARD J'- POVALSKI,

OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR T FEDCO SYSTEM,

INC., A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE IDENTIFICATION PLATE AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Application filed April 25,

My invention relates to improvements in identification plates and methods of making the same.

A more specific'object of my invention is to provide an improved plate for identifying motor vehicles; but the invention is not limited to such use, for obviously it can be used for identifying other objects as well.

Another ob ect of the invention is to provide an identification plate adapted to be permanently secured to a. car or other object, which plate cannot be altered without disclosing the fact that it has been tampered with and which cannot be duplicated or counterfeited except at such expense as would be prohibitive to a counterfeiter or by the use of machinery and equipment embodying a heavy initial expense andan establishment of such character as would betray the counterfeiter.

A further object of the present invention is to produce a plate similar in general apearance to that disclosed in- Patent Numer 1,656,928. The plate described in said patent bore superposed embossed designs, one esign being in different metal from the other. The plate was of substantial thickness with the embossings on one face only. It is an object of the present invention to provide an identification plate made of comparatively thin sheet metal so that the embossing will appear in reverse on the underface of the plate, and preferably although not necessarily to form the plate with a down-turned marginal flange or rim so as to give the plate the appearance of thickness and substantiality. Thus, the plate provided by my present invention is less expensive in the amount of material used, and the process of manufacturing the same is simplified. In the processes described in said patent, a single patterned die was used for each embossing step and the body of the plate had to be made of a metal which would flow into the recessed portions of the die. In the present process, male and female dies are used so that a relatively hard but inexpensive metal, such for instance as steel, may be used to advantage. The plates are formed out of a strip of metal and a set of integrally con 1929. Serial No. 357,967.

nected plates may be put through the various steps of my process, thereby effecting a considerable saving in operating expense over that involved in the individual handling heretofore requisite. After the plates have been completed they are finally cut out of the strip by a blanking die or other suitable means.

Another object of my invention is to provide an lmproved method of producing an area of weakness in each plate about the point or points at which it is to be attached to acar, so that these areas will tear out and mutllate the plate if anyone attempts to detach the plate.

These and other objects of my invention Wlll either be pointed out specifically or will be readily apparent in the following description of my process of manufacture and of an ldent ification plate produced thereby, but it will be understood that said description is to be taken as illustrative and not limitative of the invention, and that the novelty and scope of my invention will be clearly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings;

Figure 1 is a fragmentary plan view of a strip of sheet metal as it appears after being subjected to certain embossing steps ofmy process.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view in section, taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1, after another'step of my process. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary plan view on a larger scale than that of Fig. 1, showing a fragment of the metal strip after it has been subjected to a subsequent embossing step.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged view in section taken on the line H of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a view in longitudinal section showing the strip between the dies which produce the final embossing, and illustrating, particularly, the manner of producing the areas of weakness.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary plan view of the under side of the strip, showing the areas of weakness formed therein.

gig. 7 is a face view of a finished plate, an

Fig. 8 is an enlarged view in section taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. 7.

The strip of metal from which my improved plates are made, may be a thin sheet of steel, although obviously other metals might be used; in fact other materials beside metal might also be employed. It is desirable, however, to use a relatively hard material which, in the thin section employed, will be stiff enough to hold its shape under service conditions. If steel is used for the body metal, I find it desirable to plate'the steel so as to protect it from rust and also to provide a ground of suitable color upon which the identifying indicia are to be formed on the plate. Certain of the indicia are to be plated with a metal which will contrast in color with that of the ground metal. For instance, copper may be plated on the steel strip, and it serves admirably for a ground, not only because of its natural color, but also because it may be readily oxidized; and furthermore it provides an excellent electrode on which other metals may be electro plated. Nickel may be used to advantage for said other indicia not only because it plates well on copper, but because it prov vldes a sharp color contrast and maintains its lustre under atmospheric conditions which would seriously corrode other metals. However, while I findcopper and nickel are very satisfactory for my improved identification plates, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit myself to the use of either or both of these metals.

I prefer to use two sets of indicia on the plate, embossing one set over the other. Thus, in the case of an identification plate for automobiles, one set of indicia may consist of a name, mark, design or the like, representing the make or model of the car, and hereafter this set of indicia will be termed the make indicia. The other set of indicia may consist of a number designating the particular car of said make or model to which the plate is attached. This latter set of indicia, which we shall hereinafter term the number indicia, can be either a serial number or a code made up of Arabic numerals and alphabetical characters, or any other set of symbols. Obviously, indicia having an entirely different si ificance can also be used and the terms make indicia and number indicia are not to be considered as limitative but merely to distinguish between two sets of indicia separately embossed on the plate.

If steel is used for the body of the plate the first step is to coat the steel with a platmg of copper. Where copper coated steel is obtainable on the market this step may be dispensed with. A strip of the body metal is passed through an embossing press to em- 11088 a set of indicia thereon. Male and female dies are used so that the indicia will stand in relief on the obverse face of the strip and in intaglio on the reverse face of the strip. The indicia thus embossed are preferably the number indicia. It will be understood that the number indicia are preferably successively embossed and that the number is changed at each embossing, unless'duplicate plates are to be used on the car.

In Fig. 1 the strip is shown at 10 and is represented as having two successive embossings thereon, each embossing comprises a raised border 11 and a number 12. The borders are preferably (but not necessarily) formed by a second set of embossings between male and female dies which at the same time cup the plates that are to be subsequently cut out of the strip. In other words, the plate is made to stand in high relief from the body of the strip. To bring the embossings into proper registry, location holes 13 are provided which may be formed in the strip prior to the first embossing. After the strip has been cupped to form the plates the cupping will serve to center each plate for a subsequent embossing presently to be described.

After the strip has been suitably embossed with the number indicia the plate is painted with a coat of japan or other suitable coating material. The coating is preferably applied only to the border 11 and the parts enclosed thereby. Fig. 2 shows the plate in section, with the coating 14 ap lied to the surface of the plate. To simph the drawings the copper plating on the base metal is not shown in the sectional views. It will be observed that owing to the viscosity of the japan, fillets are formed in the corners of the embossing, providing a relatively greater thickness of japan at such corners. The purpose of these fillets, is to preserve the outlines of the first embossing when a second embossing is superim osed thereon.

After the plate has en coated with 'apan it is placed in an oven and baked sufficiently to dry and harden the japan;

The next step consists in grinding oil the japan, down to the copper surface of the strip 10. In Fig. 2 the depth of the rinding is indicated by the broken line i-A. Thus, all the raised surfaces of the embossing are exposed while the depressed portions remain coated with japan.

The next step is to subject the strip to a nickel plating process, by which a thin coating of nickel is applied to all the ex osed surfaces of the plate. After this has been done the plate is subjected to a final embossing by which the make indicia are impressed thereon. The appearance of a fragment of the strip after this final embossing is shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

The final embossing is done with a pair of dies 16 and 17, as shown in Fig. 5'. The male die 16 isprovided with a pair of inserted punches 18 by which the areas of weakness are formed. Each punch is formed at its ness to say,

operating end with an annular rib 19 which compresses the metal and reduces 1ts th ckless than half the normal thickness of the strip, thereby forming annular grooves 20. These grooves do not show on the obverse face of the plate because the female die 17 has no mating depressions to receive the metal pressed byrthe ribs 19. The grooves 20, as shown in ig. 6, are preferably located under some significant part of the design and more particularly under the number indicia. In applying the plate to a vehicle or other base, the plate is attached, preferably by welding regions 21 within the grooves 20, to the base, so that 1f any effort is made to pull the plate away from its base, it will tear out along the grooves 20, thus mutilating a conspicuous part of the plate which a counterfeiter could not restore without betraying the fact that the plate has been tampered with.

The section, Fig. 4, shows the appearance of the strip after the final embosslng. It will be observed that while the first embossing has been substantially flattened it is still slightly raised above the normal surface of the plate due to the fact that the depressions of the first embossing are preserved by the coating of japan and also because the fillets at the corners form marginal depressions 1n the body metal about the elevations of the first embossing, thus outlining said elevations even where traversed by raised parts of the second embossing. The dies used in the final embossing are cut to preserve the frame 11 so that the latter will stand in as high a relief as that of the make indicia.

The next step of the process is to remove the japan, which is readily done by dlssolving 1t ina suitable solvent. This exposes the copper face of the plate. To provide a marked contrast between the nickeled surfaces and the rest of the plate, the latter is subjected to an oxidizing process which will give the copper surface a rich brown or almost black color.

In order to make the number indicia stand out prominently I find it desirable to give them a stippled surface so that they will refleet light from all angles. To this end the female die 17 is formed with stippled pads which engage the number indicia, so that in the final embossing operation a stippled effeet is produced on the nickel surfaces of the number indicia.

The final operation consists in cutting the plates out of the strip 10 by passing the latter through a blanking die. A finished plate is shown in Figs. 7 and 8 and it will be observed that the border 11 is formed with a downturned flange or rim 22 which, when the plate is applied to a suitable support, serves to give the plate the appearance of being formed of a thick strip of metal and also make it difiicult to get at the anchorage or pointof attachment of the plate to its support.

In some cases it is desirable to have the natural color of the ground metal show on certain parts of the make indicia. This effect can be secured by burnishing the raised surfaces of the plate to remove the oxidized metal therefrom. In the drawings, I have shown the make indicia as including a medallion 23. This medallion alone is burnished so that it stands out in the natural copper color against the dark oxidized surface of the rest of the make indicia.

While I have referred to japan as a coating, other materials could be used. It is desirable, however, that the coating be viscous when applied and that, when baked or dried, it be hard enough to stand up under the grinding operation and yet pliable enough not to crack or flake under the final embossing operation. Instead of grinding the coating off the high surfaces of the first embossing it may be removed by any other suitable means; i. e. by scraping it off or dissolving it. Instead of using copper-coated steel for the base metal, a strip of solid metal, such as copper, or a suitable alloy could be employed.

Obviously, many changes could be made in the steps of my process, in the materials employed, and in the structure of my improved identification plate without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention as described in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the

steps which consist in providing a strip of sheet metal having a surface capable of being darkened by oxidation, embossing the strip to form a plate with raised indicia thereon and a down-turned marginal rim, covering the embossing with a coating, removing the coating from the raised surfaces of the embossing, plating the surfaces thus exposed with a metal which will not darken when ex-- posed to oxidation, embossing the plate with other indicia superposed on the first named indicia, removing the rest of the coating, oxidizing the plate, and removing the oxide from a part of the plate.

2. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in embossing a sheet of metal between male and female dies to form a plate with raised indicia thereon and a downtprned marginal rim, applying a liquid coat ing on the embossing, baking the plate to .harden said coating, removing the coating from the raised surfaces of the embossing, plating the uncoated surfaces of the plate withv a metal of different color from that of the strip, subjecting the plate to another embossing between male and female dies to superpose a second set of indicia in relief upon the first indicia, forming a depression in the underface of the plate to provide an area of weakness in the plate, and removing the rest of the coating.

3. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in embossing a thin sheet of metal between male and female dies to form a plate with raised indicia thereon and a down-turned marginal rim, applying a liquid coating to the plate, baking the plate to harden the coating, grinding the coating of? the raised surfaces of the embossing, plating the exposed surfaces of the plate with a metal of different color from that of the strip, subjecting the plate tween male and female dies to superpose a second set of indicia in relief over the first indicia and to impress an annular groove on the underface of the plate, and removing the rest of the coating.

4. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in embossing a metal sheet between male and female dies to form a plate with raised indicia thereon and with a downturned marginal rim, applying a liquid coating on the plate, hardening the coating, removing the coating from the raised portions of the embossing, plating the uncoated surfaces of the plate with a metal of different color from that of the sheet, subjecting the plate to another embossing to roughen the plated surfaces of the indicia and to superpose other indicia in relief over the first named indicia, and removing the rest of the coatmg.

5. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in providing a strip of metal having a surface capable of being darkened by oxidation, embossing said strip between male and female dies to form a plate with 'raised indicia thereon and a downturned marginal rim, applying a liquid coating on the plate, hardening the coating, removing the coating from the raised surfaces of the embossing, plating the exposed surfac'esof the plate with a metal of light color and not materially affected by oxidation, subjecting the plate to another embossing to roughen the plated surfaces of the indicia and to superpose other indicia in relief over the first named indicia, removing the rest of the coating, and subjecting the plate to an oxidizing process.

6. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in providin a strip' of metal having a surface capable of being darkened by oxidation, embossing said strip between male and female dies to form a plate with raised indicia thereon and a downturned marginal rim,

ing on the plate, hardening the coating, 'removingthe coating from the raised surfaces to another embossing bepp ying a liquid coat-' ing the plate to another embossing to stipple the plated surfaces of the indicia and to superpose other indicia in relief over the first named indicia, removing the rest of the coating, oxidizing the plate and removing the oxide from part of the plate.

7. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in providing a. stri of metal having a surface capable of being darkened by oxidation, embossing said strip between male and female dies to form a plate with raised indicia thereon and a downturned marginal rim, applying a liquid coating on the plate, hardening the coating, removing the coating from the raised surfaces of the embossing, plating the exposed surfaces of the plate with a metal of light color not materially afiectedby oxidation, embossing the plate between another pair of male and female dies to roughen the plated surfaces of the indicia and to superpose other indicia in relief over the first named indicia and to impress a relatively deep groove in the under-face of the plate, removin the rest of the coating, and oxidizing the p ate.

8. In the process ofmaking an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in providing a strip of metal having a surface capable of being darkened by oxidation, embossing said strip between male and female dies to form a plate with raised indicia thereon and a downturned marginal rim, applying a liquid coating on the plate, hardening the coating, removing the coating from the raised surfaces of the embossing, plating the exposed surfaces of the plate with a metal of light color not materially affected by oxidation, embossing the plate between another pair of male and female dies to roughen the plated surfaces of indicia and to superpose other indicia in relief over the first named indicia and to impress a relatively deep groove in the underface of the plate, removing the rest of the coating, oxidizing the plate, and burnishing a portion of the plate to remove the oxide from said portion.

9. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in embossing a sheet of metal between male and female dies to form indicia thereon, covering the indicia with a coating, removing the coating from the raised surfaces of the embossing, plating the exposed surfaces of the plate with a metal of lighter color than that of the sheet and one which will not darken when exposed to oxidation, embossing the plate with other indicia superoxidizing the plate,

and removing the oxide from a portion of the plate.

10. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in providing a strip of metal having a surface capable of being darkened by oxidation, embossing said strip between male and female dies to form raised indicia thereon, covering the indicia with a coating, hardening the coating, removing the coating from the raised surfaces of the embossing, plating the exposed surfaces of the plate with a metal of light color which will not material ly darken when subjected to oxidation, embossing other indicia upon the first named indicia and simultaneously roughening the plated surfaces of the first named indicia, removing the rest of the coating, and oxidizing the plate.

11. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described the steps which consist in providing a strip of metal having a surface capable of being darkened by oxidation, embossing said strip between male and female dies to form a plate with raised indicia thereon, covering the indicia with a coating, hardening the coating, removing the coating from the raised surfaces of the embossing, plating the exposed surfaces of the plate-with a metal of light color which will not materially darken when subjected to oxidation, embossing other indicia upon the first named indicia and simultaneously roughening the plated surfaces of thefirst named indicia, removing the rest of the coating, oxidizing the plate, and burnishing a portion of the plate to remove the oxide therefrom. v

v 12. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in embossing indicia upon a thin plate of metal, embossing a second set of indicia over the first set and simultaneously impressing a groove in the underside of the plate, and treating the obverse surface of the plate between embossings to prevent obliteration, by the second embossing, of the indicia formed by the first embossing.

13. In the process of making an identification plate of the character described, the steps which consist in embossing indicia upon a relatively thin plate of metal subjecting the plate to a second embossing to form a second set of indicia over the first indicia and to simultaneously roughen the plated surfaces of the first indicia and to impress an annular groove in the underside of the plate, and treating the obverse face of the plate between embossings to prevent obliteration, bv the second embossing, of the indicia formdd by the first embossing.

14. In the process of making identification plates of the character described, the steps which consist in embossing a relatively thin plate of metal between male and female dies to form indicia thereon, subsequently embossing a second set of indicia over the first set, and treating the plate after the first embossing to preserve the indicia thereon from being obliterated by the subsequent embossing.

15. In the process of making identification plates of the character described, the steps which consist in embossing a relatively thin plate of metal between male and female dies to form indicia on both faces of the plate, subsequently embossing the plate between male and female dies to form a second set of indicia traversing the first set, and treating the plate after the first embossing to preserve the indicia thereon from being obliterated by the subsequent embossing.

16. As an article of manufacture an identi fication plate formed of a thin sheet of metal with indicia standing in relief on the obverse face of the plate, and a relatively deep groove in the reverse face of the plate to provide a region of weakness.

17. As an article of manufacture an iden tification plate formed of relatively thin sheet metal with embossing indicia thereon, the plate having a welding surface on the underside thereof and a groove in said under-side and surrounding the welding surface to provide a line of weakness thereabout.

18. As an article of manufacture an identification plate formed of relatively thin sheet 

